The Rules of Marriage
by iloveromance
Summary: Niles' much coveted ethics are tested when he disagrees with a husband wanting marriage counseling for himself and his estranged wife. Christmas gift for Andress Jade


_**A/N: Thanks to Marie S Zachary, whose story "Niles' Passion" inspired this.**_

Niles drove home in a state of distress, unable to believe what had just happened. In the course of a one-hour marriage counseling session with an estranged couple, he'd managed to jeopardize his practice and possibly ruin his reputation. He'd never turned a patient or potential client away in his entire career but at the time he felt he had no choice. However, now his ethics were taunting him so severely that he found that he needed to pull over on the side of the road to contain his composure. His hands securely around the steering wheel; he closed his eyes and leaned against the back of the seat as the painful memories of the earlier events of the day came back to him.

* * *

_**Wed, 9am.**_

_After arranging the chairs in suitable positions and making certain that everything was in place, Niles checked his watch. This was the day he set aside for his marriage counseling sessions. It was a nice change from the patients he often treated; those whose problems were sometimes far beyond his capabilities of ever coming to a solution. Still, he relished the chance to help a lost soul, even if it meant referring them to a colleague or simply telling them that he'd exhausted all of his options. _

_But now he looked forward to meeting with his latest challenge. Usually he met with his couples in a group, but this couple, Mark and Roberta Straus, insisted on a private session. They'd been married for eighteen years and together for over twenty-one, but their marriage had begun to fall apart. When Mark first called Niles stating that he'd been given the office number by Roger Burkowiz, Niles longtime colleague, Niles didn't hesitate to schedule a preliminary appointment for the estranged couple. Niles knew all too well the pain of being in a rocky marriage, having been through two of them. Now that he'd finally found the love of his life and the love he'd always dreamed of, he wanted to help as many patients as possible to feel the same joy. _

_However, when Niles' heard Mrs. Woodson's tinny voice through the intercom announcing the arrival of the couple, a wave of anxiety came over him. He always felt this way when meeting patients or clients for the first time. He supposed it was only natural, but often he felt that it was a sign of disrespect. Fortunately Frasier had once confessed that he felt the same way. He and his brother didn't always get along, but when it came to matters of the profession they had both chosen in the path of their mother, Frasier's insight was invaluable. However, there was no time at all to make a quick phone call to Frasier. Niles would have to go through this alone. _

_A knock on the door rattled him and he smoothed the lapels of his suit and straightened his tie as he went to answer the door. The couple seemed friendly enough; about the same age as he and Daphne, and they were dressed nicely. Mr. Straus was tall with dark hair and slight graying on the sides. Mrs. Straus was, by contrast, quite petite with red shoulder-length hair, highlighted by blonde highlights. Neither wore much of a smile so Niles gave them one of his as he greeted them warmly, inviting them into his office._

"_Please… come in, have a seat. It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Dr. Niles Crane. I understand you were referred to me by Dr. Burkowiz?"  
_

_Mrs. Straus nodded, clearly nervous about the situation. "Yes… he did. Didn't he, honey?"  
_

_"Yes, Roberta! I've already told you that three times! I also told you not to speak unless you were spoken to!"_

_Niles was taken aback by Mr. Straus's harshness toward his wife, but it provided him an outlet for which to gather more information and help the couple. "Well, Dr. Burkowiz is a wonderful friend of mine and an excellent therapist. So why don't we start by discussing why you've decided to seek help for your marriage?"  
_

_Mark's expression grew stern. "We're here because my wife, Mrs. Straus, refuses to accept my position as the head of the household. I am in charge and what I say goes!"  
_

_Niles shifted uncomfortably in his seat, but said nothing. Instead he looked at Roberta, who already had tears in her eyes. _"Yes, Sir."_ Roberta said, as though answering the call of a drill sergeant instead of her husband.  
_

_"Mrs. Straus, why don't you tell me a little bit about your relationship history?"  
_

_"Well, I-."  
_

_"I'll do the talking thank you!" Mark interjected, shooting a glare at his wife. "I believe that instead of just full-on counseling we should try domestic discipline."  
_

_Niles' eyes narrowed and he leaned forward in his chair, his pen scribbling rapidly on his notepad. "I'm sorry, Mr. Straus, I'm not familiar with the term."  
_

_"Well like I said, the husband is always in charge no matter what! I set the rules and I discipline Mrs. Straus for breaking them."  
_

_"Mr. Straus, you do realize that this is your wife of eighteen years and not your daughter?"  
_

_Mark shot out of his chair, his eyes filled with rage. "Of course I know! Why would you even ask me something like that? What kind of a doctor are you?"  
_

_"Mark, please!" Roberta cried, grabbing his shirt to pull her husband back into his chair. "You promised you wouldn't do this! I thought we were going to listen to what Dr. Crane has to say!"  
_

_"I'm through listening to damn psychics!" Mark bellowed.  
_

_Niles suppressed a smile. "Um, actually I'm a psychiatrist, Mr. Straus, but now that you mention it, my wife-."  
_

_"I don't give a damn about your wife! This is our session, not some trip down memory lane!" _

_Niles swallowed hard, his fist clinched so tightly that his skin was turning even paler than normal. "Mr. Straus, this is the 21__st__ century and if you're referring to physical discipline…"_

"_Of course I am! What other kind is there? You wouldn't believe what a good smack across the face or a session of name calling does for our situation! Usually, the yelling does the trick, but if need be-" _

_Niles wanted to scream and yell, and ultimately throw the man out after calling the authorities, but he remained as calm as humanly possible and took a deep breath. This was by far the worst case of a couple in a rocky marriage that he'd ever seen. Even his marriage to Maris and Mel didn't involve physical violence toward each other. _

"_Mr. Straus as I said before, and as you quickly dismissed, I am married! It took me over six years to tell Daphne that I was in love with her and I will cherish her until the day that I die! She is beautiful, strong, smart and absolutely wonderful and I love her more than she'll ever know! We have our disagreements and sometimes they result in raised voices, but I would never, ever lay a hand on her and hurt her physically, do you understand?" _

_He was trembling now, pushing the boundaries of his ethics, but he simply couldn't stop. _

"_Daphne is the love of my life and I don't feel the need to control her as though she is my slave! I don't even treat my young son David in the manner of which you say you treat Mrs. Straus. I don't set rules for Daphne, I don't keep secrets from her and I certainly don't harm her! That is unacceptable!"  
_

_When he was finished with his rant, Niles felt himself trembling uncontrollably, his face flushed with anger. But to his complete shock, Mr. Straus stood and threw up his hands as though surrendering. "Well, then I'm out of ideas on how to discipline her, other than getting really angry. What do you suggest?"  
_

_The pencil Niles held in his hand snapped in half, causing Roberta to jump. _

_"I suggest that you leave my office at once before I call the authorities!" Niles yelled. In all my years of being a couple's therapist, I have never said this to anyone before, but I cannot and will not counsel you as long as this behavior goes on! I can see by your face and by your blatant disrespect for your wife that you have absolutely no intention of ever changing your ways. I would be happy to refer you to another therapist, Mr. Straus, so that you can get serious help on the issue of why you feel that you need to control others. But you need to go home and take a good hard look at yourself and your marriage. Tonight I want you to sit down and make a list of reasons that you fell in love with this beautiful woman sitting next to you. Believe me; you're sure to find several. And then I want you to go to her and read her the list. Lastly I want you to start treating her with respect and apologize for any physical and emotional harm that you've caused her. Because if Roberta is anything like Daphne, she deserves nothing less than all the love you can give her. She chose to marry you. This isn't the age of arranged marriages. This is America and in America we are free to love whomever we want. That band of gold around your finger doesn't entitle you to treat people whoever you choose. You have to keep earning her love day after day as long as you both shall live. Now if you'll excuse me, I have another appointment!"  
_

_To the couple's stunned amazement, Niles rose from his chair and grabbed his briefcase, leaving the couple sitting as they were. Without looking back he walked out of the office, aware of Mrs. Woodson's surprised expression. "Dr. Crane, what's wrong?"  
_

_"Would you please show Mrs. And Mr. Straus out? I need to leave. There's someone I need to see."_

_He walked out of the office, never daring to look back. And when he reached his car, his heart was beating so rapidly that his fingers trembled as he attempted to unlock the door. _

* * *

Now he pulled away from the side of the road, determined to get home as quickly as possible. He wanted nothing more than to take Daphne into his arms and apologize for all the times he'd hurt her… and there were plenty.

The closer he came to the Montana the faster his heartbeat. He stopped only for a few moments in order to pick up some roses at a nearby grocery store before heading out to his car again. The roses beside him on the seat, he inhaled their sweet scent, smiling with anticipation at how beautiful Daphne would look holding them in her arms. And finally he was home.

He couldn't get to the elevator fast enough and when the doors finally opened on the top floor; he rushed out and headed for their apartment. As before, his fingers trembled and when he managed to insert his key into the lock. But to his amazement the door opened automatically, revealing his wife, looking stunningly beautiful in a simple red dress and her hair piled atop her head. But it was the way she burst into tears at the sight of him that caused him concern.

He went to her at once, forgetting about the hell he'd been through earlier, and engulfed her into his arms. The feel of her body next to his, her arms around him, had never been more welcome. "Daphne, my angel, what is it? What's wrong?"

"I love you so much, Niles. You're the most wonderful man in the world."

Her words made him smile and he didn't hesitate to reply with sweet, sensuous kisses that seemed to last forever. "I love you too, Daphne, but why…"

She drew back and brushed the tears from her cheeks. "I know it was wrong, but I answered your office phone. I'm sorry Niles, but it just kept ringing and-."

"Daphne, what is it? What's happened? Who was on the phone?"

"It was a Mr. Storm… No… um… Mr. Straus… _Mark_, I think he said."

Niles eyes widened in disbelief. "_Mark Straus_?"

"Yes, that's the one."

He shoved his hand through his hair, unable to believe what he was hearing. "Dear God… What did he want?"

"He wanted to know if you'd be willing to reconsider and take him as a patient… _alone _he said. I didn't ask what the problem was but he told me anyway. And then he told me about how he and his wife are having such a hard time and about the lovely things that you said about me."

Niles took a moment to process the information. "He wants me to treat him?"

"Yes, but he said he would completely understand if you declined. He's very sorry for the things he said to you and he did as you asked; he made a list of the reasons that he fell in love with his wife. Turns out there were over fifty reasons on the list. And when he read them to her, she cried. They made love for the first time in years and it was even better than he remembered." She blushed deeply, her hand flying to her mouth. "Oh dear… I shouldn't have told you all of that should I? He swore me to secrecy! Oh Niles, please don't tell him that I told you what he said! I just found it so beautiful and-."

He took her into his arms and kissed her with all of the passion he consumed within him. "Daphne, I love you so much and…oh…"

"What is it?"

He bent down to retrieve the roses which had fallen onto the floor. "These are for you."

She smiled and inhaled the sweet scent, looking even more beautiful than he imagined. "Niles, these are beautiful… thank you so much."

"That's only the beginning. From now on I'm going to spend the rest of my life showing you how much I love you."

Her hands cupped his face and she kissed him tenderly. "Niles, you show me every day!"

"I mean _really _show you. And if I ever hurt you in anyway, let me know and I'll make it right. I apologize for everything I've ever done to hurt you, even before we were a couple."

"And I feel the same. I'm afraid I haven't been very kind to you over the years, Niles… and then hurting you by accepting Donny's prop-."

He silenced her with a kiss that made his knees weak. "No more talking. I believe we have a session to attend to in the bedroom."

She laughed and hugged him tightly. "Well that's a session I look forward to."

"You go upstairs and get ready and I'll be there in a minute."

"But where are you going? I thought-."

"To call Mr. Straus… I need to talk to him about scheduling regular appointments."

"I love you, Niles."

"I love you too, Daphne. I'll see you in a little while."

She kissed him one last time and then disappeared up the stairs. And when he reached his office he quickly dialed the number, smiling to himself when he got Mr. Straus's voice mail. The message he left was brief but he knew that come tomorrow he'd be speaking with the man in more detail. They certainly had a lot to talk about.

The road to 'recovery' as it were, would certainly be long, but he was confident that they would reach the end and Mr. And Mrs. Straus would find happiness, just as

Niles had found happiness with his angel; the woman he loved more than life itself.

As he loosened his tie and slid it off of his neck, he turned off the light before racing up the stairs. His session with Daphne was sure to be one they would never forget.

THE END


End file.
